Dodgers second baseman Mark Ellis went on the disabled list yesterday with an undisclosed injury. Later it was revealed that he would be out for six weeks, but the problem was still not revealed.

Now though, we know it was compartment syndrome and he had to have a surgery called a fasciotomy to prevent serious damage to the leg.

The Dodgers received some bad news on injured second baseman Mark Ellis, who was placed on the disabled list earlier Saturday with what was termed a lower left leg injury. Ellis had to have urgent surgery on his lower leg on Saturday, a fasciotomy, a procedure to relieve pressure in the leg to improve circulation.

Ellis was hit on the side of his leg Friday night on a slide by Tyler Greene at second base. Pressure built in Ellis’s left leg overnight and he was sent to the hospital by the Dodgers on Saturday.

“You have several compartments in the lower leg. When you have trauma to that area, blood trauma, fluids, tissue, and everything swells up. You have to open up that fascia to release that pressure,” Dodgers trainer Sue Falsone explained after the game.

Ellis will be hospitalized until Tuesday, and will miss at least six weeks.

“As we go, we’re going to do more exams on his knee,” Falsone said. “What we had to do today was urgent so we’re just focused on the lower leg right now.”

“At least six weeks.”

The first two words are the most important, because after looking up some cases of compartment syndrome, it does seem like four to six weeks is the minimum time for the affected leg to return to normal, much less play a professional sport on. Plus, as the trainer mentioned, they haven’t examined the rest of the leg yet, so it could get worse.

As shown in slo-mo yesterday, his ankle was bent, his knee was hyper-extended, and his shin got hit, so we’ll just have to hope for the best in regards to the rest of the tests. Honestly, it sounds like six weeks would be fortunate at this point.

Then again, I’m sure it depends on the individual case though, as New York Giants wide receiver Hakeem Nicksonly missed three weeks with the injury back in 2010. So maybe there’s hope?